Canada holds first-ever category-based selection for Express Entry trades candidates

Canada has held a series of Express Entry draws this week.

Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is continuing to conduct Express Entry draws, inviting 1,500 trades candidates in a category-based selection round on August 3, 2023. The Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score was 388.

On August 2, IRCC invited 800 candidates with a minimum Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score of 435 in a category-based draw targeting those with French-language proficiency.

On August 1, IRCC held a general Express Entry draw inviting 2,000 candidates. The CRS cut-off requirement was 517.

During the week of July 10-14, IRCC issued 4,600 total Invitations to Apply (ITAs) issued in two Express Entry draw rounds: an all-program draw (with a minimum CRS of 505), and a targeted French language proficiency draw (with a minimum CRS of 439). Recent weeks have also seen category-based draws for Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and healthcare professionals.

Other targeted categories

As IRCC continues to pursue targeted draws, there are still three other categories that the department has not yet used to bring more qualified professionals to Canada. These are:

Trade occupations (like welders, carpenters, plumbers, etc.);
Transport occupations (like truck drivers, air pilots, railway traffic controllers, deck officers, etc.); and
Agriculture and agri-food occupations (like butchers, contractors, and farm supervisors).

Notably both targeted and program-based Express Entry draws are expected to continue at the same time, with recent trends suggesting that they will happen separately, on the same day or in consecutive days.

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